This invention relates generally to safety apparatus and more particularly to a fall arrest device in the form of a lanyard having means for gripping a pole or other vertical member.
Safety devices for a person climbing a pole, e.g., a telephone pole, to prevent the person from falling have been disclosed in various patents. For example, in U.S. Pat. No. 1,120,496 (Holsclaw) there is disclosed a safety device for connection to telephone lineman's belt to encircle the pole on which the lineman is working. The safety device comprises a belt and an associated wheel frame for frictionally encircling the pole. The wheel frame includes a roller having spurs projecting from it to bite into the pole to prevent the device from slipping while enabling the lineman to swing around the periphery of the pole.
In U.S. Pat. No. 2,853,220 (Thomas) there is disclosed a safety device for a telephone lineman. That device comprises a sleeve having a plurality of substantially U-shaped prongs projecting from it. The sleeve is arranged to be positioned on a belt which is connected to a telephone lineman and which encircles the pole on which the lineman is located so that the prongs penetrate into the surface of the pole to prevent slippage of the belt on the pole.
In U.S. Pat. No. 4,595,078 (Greenway) there is disclosed a fall arrest device for a pole climber. That device includes a main yoke and secondary yokes for engaging the pole on which the climber is located. The main yoke has a pair of resiliently biased arms at each end for partially encompassing the pole. The arms include sharp projections to bite into the pole. Each arm also includes a hand grip to enable the worker to maneuver the arm to enable the device to be moved up or down on the pole.
While the devices of the aforementioned patents may be suitable for their intended purposes, they never the less suffer from one or more drawbacks, e.g., simplicity of construction, easy of use, and resistance to accidental displacement.